Aaron Gordon practically got a max contract and the highly-rated Mohamed Bamba became the shiniest addition to an already young, talented roster. But to focus your full attention on those two would be a massive disservice to Jonathan Isaac, the Magic’s next great franchise cornerstone.

Still, if you’re heading into this regular season in need of a refresher course on the burgeoning second-year professional, you certainly wouldn’t be alone. After going No. 6 overall in 2017, Isaac worked through normal rookie season yips in a reserve role but suffered a nasty ankle injury in November that shelved him for 45 of the following 48 games.

His return in March was welcomed, albeit unexplosive. Now (nearly) healthy, Isaac is currently preparing for what he hopes will be a full-on breakout season — but the forward has noted some major changes in his perspective and outlook.

“It’s huge, man, it’s just a huge difference from where I’m at mentally with it all,” Isaac told Basketball Insiders. “Like last year, all the nerves and anxiousness of just like: ‘Oh, media day’ — like the first one. But there’s definitely a calmness and stillness about this one and it’s easier.”

Over his 27 contests in 2017-18, Isaac posted an average of 5.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks in 19.9 minutes per game. All things considered — including the injury that nearly derailed the 21-year-old for an entire season — those were some encouraging returns. But in an outstanding rookie class, Ben Simmons, Donovan Mitchell and Jayson Tatum only served to fade Isaac further into the background — well, that is, until his coming out party this summer.

Out in Los Angeles, Isaac stood out in a big way, dominating alongside the looming — and his now close friend — Bamba, tallying 14.3 points, seven rebounds, 1.3 steals and 2.7 blocks in three games. From turnaround fadeaways on the baseline to nailing jumpers off the dribble, Isaac appeared more confident and comfortable on one end, while continuing to be a rim-protecting, shot-changing pest on the other. Simply put, if people weren’t ready to talk about the 6-foot-10 hyper-mobile Isaac, they certainly are now.

“Having people talk about you always feels great, especially if it’s positive things,” Isaac joked. “Having people see growth and say: ‘Wow, we might see something here that we didn’t expect’ or ‘he’s able to do things that we didn’t expect’ — it feels great.

“It definitely adds fuel to the fire, wanting to get that place of becoming the great player that I see myself becoming. It just gives me more incentive to work harder.”

An assumed eruption for Isaac would firmly entrench him in the new-era Magic blueprint, one that includes the aforementioned Gordon — who earned a contract worth $76 million in July — and Bamba. Together, the long, athletic trio would hopefully form a terrorizing force in the Eastern Conference for years to come. And although it’s easy to pick out those with the ceilingless potential on Orlando’s roster, Isaac was quick to heap praise on the entire roster before reluctantly talking about himself.

“I hate to talk about this because I don’t want to put too much emphasis on just us three,” Isaac told Basketball Insiders. “[Evan, Vucevic], these guys are big-time basketball players and great players for our team. Mo is just coming into his own, I’m just coming into my own and I don’t want to leave any of those guys out — D.J. — so many guys that are going to be great for us this year. But I do definitely see that buzz around me, AG and Mo.”

But as our Spencer Davies detailed in the offseason, the optimism surrounding their newly-minted twin towers is what might just excite onlookers the most. Unsurprisingly, their on-court chemistry has soared, even boasting a fun moment in which the pair simultaneously blocked the same shot during Summer League. (“If we ever do that again — that’ll be a miracle,” Isaac laughed in recollection.) However, it’s the duo’s real-life kinship that has truly blossomed in the days since the draft. Isaac and Bamba, who go back to high school together, have spent much of their free time learning what makes each other tick.

“I would say it’s definitely two-fold — Mo is a great dude and so full of energy,” Isaac said. “And he’s really smart and just hanging out with him has been fantastic, getting to know him more, getting to know about his family and where he comes from and all that.

“It’s been good to have real heart-to-heart moments.”

Needless to say, those fun anecdotes will only stay fresh as long as the wins keep coming for a Magic team still searching for an identity. Outside of last season’s minor aberration — Orlando finished one game better than the Atlanta Hawks at 25-57 — the Magic have come in last place within the Southeast Division every year since 2012-13. That season, naturally, was the first without Dwight Howard, the franchise’s last truly dominant force in the paint and a multi-time Defensive Player of the Year winner.

While Isaac would someday like to emulate that Future Hall of Famer’s successes in blue and white, the forward showed promise of his own throughout that hampered rookie season. Had Isaac qualified, his 1.1 blocks per game would’ve ranked him just barely behind the Nets’ Jarrett Allen for the best shot-blocker in the class, and he recorded multi-block efforts in a third of his total contests. As Isaac continues to improve, so will Orlando’s overall team numbers — a should-be featured anchor in a shaky unit that ranked 11th-worst in 2017-18 for defensive rating.

According to Isaac, that recently unearthed Summer League prowess comes from a strong faith and a growing comfort.

“Me, I put it all on my faith and that is honestly where it comes from for me,” Isaac told Basketball Insiders. “Having that new confidence in myself, a new stillness in myself — yeah, it definitely comes from the work as well, getting in and working hard . . . But also time as well, letting time take its toll and me being more mature and comfortable with myself.”

If there really was some self-proclaimed nervousness last season, Isaac looks to have shed those insecurities today. For as frustrating as that ankle injury may have been, Isaac has come away with lessons that’ll guide the rest of his bright career. That stillness — a word he returns to time and time again — places Isaac in new territory far before he’s even scratched his on-court potential as well. In a way, those initial setbacks could galvanize an already promising prospect.

But even if Isaac wanted to rush things before — back from injury, into the spotlight — he now believes that it’ll all work itself out eventually.

“Absolutely [I wanted to rush it], and I think that’s such a part of my stillness and my comfortability and calmness in it now,” Isaac said. “It’s not on my timing, I give that all to God. It’s his will for my life and where he wants me to be is where I’m gonna be.

“All I can do is focus on how hard I work, how hard I approach each and every day — but the time will come where everything unfolds.”

Joe Harris’ fortunes and those of the Brooklyn Nets appear to be traveling on the same trajectory. Harris’ personality and approach embody the softer side of the Brooklyn Nets’ team persona: he is loyal, hardworking and humble. And while Jared Dudley and DeMarre Carroll provide veteran leadership and Spencer Dinwiddie and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson offer personality, Harris provides a grounded approachability.

No one would blame him, though, if he develops a small ego. After all, Harris just received his formal introduction to the world, having won the NBA’s three-point championship last weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina. It’s hard to deny that his star is rising.

And yet, Harris seems unaware that his status is rising.

“To be honest, I am solid in my role. That’s what I’m about,” Harris told Basketball Insiders before the Nets’ January 25 game against the Knicks. “I’m pretty realistic with where I view myself as a player. And I have the self-awareness to realize that I’m not a star player in this league by any means. I mean, I’m good in my role and I’m trying to take that to another level and be as complete as I can in my niche role that I have.”

While Harris’ comments could be misinterpreted as a humble brag, they shouldn’t be. He is simply a hard-working player who perhaps doesn’t quite realize everything he adds to his team. But let’s be clear, Harris’ presence absolutely improves the Nets’ play.

Harris boasts the second-best three-point percentage in the NBA (.471) through the first four months of the season; he trails only Victor Olapido and J.J. Reddick for top three-point percentage of all 48 players who have at least 10 “clutch” attempts from long-range and he’s ranked tenth in points per clutch possession (1.379).

He helps space the floor for teammates D’Angelo Russell and Spencer Dinwiddie, who take advantage of his long-range acumen by attacking an often less congested pathway to the hoop — and drives account for 53.4 percent of the Nets’ points (third in the entire league).

It is no surprise then that the Nets are currently in sixth place in the Eastern Conference.

“At the end of the day we’re just trying to go play good basketball.” Harris said. “The wins are a byproduct of that. It’s about staying locked into this process and how it’s gotten us here regardless of who is on the court.”

Harris’ dedication to the team and its process is becoming more unique each year as players hop from franchise to franchise more frequently than ever before. While Harris only joined the Nets in 2016, he was immediately seen as a key player by the Nets’ leadership, albeit one on a minimum deal – according to Kyle Wagner of the Daily News, Coach Kenny Atkinson saw a lot of Kyler Korver in his game and GM Sean Marks wanted him to study Danny Green.

And while Harris’ 2018-19 stats reflect similar production to the career highs of both of Korver and Green (13.2 points per game with an effective field goal percentage of .622 for Harris versus 14.4 points with an eFG% of .518 for Korver and 11.7 points with an eFG% of .566 for Green), at only 27 years old, he should only continue to improve.

A lot has changed in the two and a half seasons since Harris signed a free agent deal with the Nets, but one thing that hasn’t changed is his character.

“We had various deals that were shorter for more (money),” Harris said. “And some were longer and roughly the same, but this is where I wanted to be and I’m happy it ended up working out.”

Harris ultimately signed a two-year deal for approximately $16 million, which can be viewed as both cashing in, given where he was only two years ago (out of the league), and betting on himself, considering the short-term nature of the contract and his relative youth.

And what’s more, Harris will probably go down as a value signing for the Nets considering his versatility. After all, he is not merely a one-dimensional shooter. In fact, he is actually shooting slightly better than 60 percent on 3.2 attempts per game from the restricted area – which is better than All-Star teammate D’Angelo Russell (53 percent on 2.8 attempts). Further, Harris shoots a fair amount of his three-point attempts above the break, which is to say that he does not rely heavily on the shorter corner threes – which tend to be a more efficient means of scoring (1.16 vs. 1.05 points per possession league-wide from 1998-2018) as they are typically a spot where specialist players lurk awaiting an opening look.

The question is, how much more can we expect to see from Harris in the future? If you ask him, he’d probably undersell you on his ceiling and allude to steady progress that ultimately looks similar to what he’s done recently. But the only thing similar about Harris’ career production is that it has steadily improved – and that’s partially due to his process-oriented approach.

“We talked about it in the midst of the losing streak,” Harris said. “What are you going to change, what are you going to do (when you’re in a slump)? Not that we were going to do the exact same thing, but we felt like we were very process oriented. We felt like we were right there. Our whole thing was about being deliberate and doing it as consistently as possible.”

Harris sees the validity in repeating what works. And he’s figured that out, partially with the help of his teammates. Harris clearly values veteran input and team chemistry.

“You look at our team right now and we have really good veteran presences with Jared and DeMarre and Ed (Davis),” Harris said. “That’s the voice from the leadership standpoint. I’m learning from them just like DLo is. And all the other guys in the locker room are. They’re the guiding presence of what it is to be a professional and they keep everything even keel. They don’t go too low when things are tough, and they don’t let us get too high when things are going well.”

Harris is clearly a little uncomfortable taking credit for his team’s success, and he shies away from the spotlight a bit. He seems to prefer anonymity. But Harris should probably get used to the attention he’s received this season because it will only increase as his profile continues to rise as we enter the 2019 NBA Playoffs.

“He’s not just a shooter,” Atkinson told NBA.com last April. “He’s worked on his drive game, he’s worked on his finishing game. I think he’s worked on his defense. So just a complete player who fits how we want to play. He’s one of our most competitive players. Not a surprise watching, from the first day we had him, how locked in he was, how hungry he was. On top of it, he’s a top, top-ranked human being.”

So expect to see more of Joe Harris this April and beyond, but don’t be surprised by his humility. It’s one aspect about him that won’t change.

Opportunity is everything in the NBA. Last season’s implementation of two-way contracts gave a lot more players potential opportunities in the league that may not have been previously available.

One player who has used two-way contracts to showcase himself and really prove that he belongs in the NBA is Danuel House Jr.

House actually began his career two years ago as an undrafted rookie with the Washington Wizards. However, he suffered a wrist injury only about a month into the 2016-17 season.

He was subsequently cut by the Wizards and used the summer to heal up before joining the Houston Rockets for training camp prior to the start of last season. He ended up being one of the final cuts in camp, and he joined the Rockets’ G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

His strong play earned him a two-way contract with the Phoenix Suns after only two months of G League play. This year, he rejoined the Vipers, only to earn another two-way contract with the Rockets. Having had some experience now with a two-way, it’s something that House sees as being beneficial.

“It’s got its good perks and its bad perks. But then the NBA is just trying to open more doors for more guys to be seen and have an opportunity,” House told Basketball Insiders. “I think it’s a good idea, it’s gonna work the kinks out so it can be more beneficial to the players. It’s still new and it’s still trending and working itself through the NBA.”

This season has been a bit of a whirlwind for House. He initially joined the Golden State Warriors for training camp, only to have them cut him before the start of the season. After spending about a month with the Vipers, the Rockets called him up, only to cut him and then eventually re-sign him to a two-way deal.

Due to injuries in the Rockets lineup, House saw meaningful minutes right away, even being placed in Houston’s starting lineup. He had some solid performances down the stretch of last season with the Suns, but this season he really looked the part of a legitimate NBA rotation player.

When a player signs a two-way deal, they are allotted a maximum of 45 days of NBA service, meaning that the rest of the time they must remain in the G League. If a player exceeds the 45-day limit, they must be sent back down to the G League unless they’re able to reach an agreement on a standard contract with the NBA team.

Because of the Rockets’ necessity of House in the rotation, he used up his NBA days last month. He and the Rockets were unable to agree on a contract, so he returned to the G League with the Vipers. While there haven’t been many updates as of late, he’s still hopeful that something can work out with the Rockets.

“Hopefully I can go back to Houston and compete for a title. There’s nothing like learning from James [Harden] and Chris Paul, Gerald Green, Eric Gordon and those guys,” House told Basketball Insiders. “And now with the additions of [Iman] Shumpert and Kenneth Faried, I’m just excited to hopefully get something done so I can be out there and competing with those guys.”

Initially, House wasn’t playing with the Vipers upon returning to the team. But he made his return to the court a few weeks ago on Feb 8. In that game, House shook off some initial rust and ended up having a solid performance including hitting the game-winning free-throws.

In the past, the G League was often times seen as a punishment for NBA players. The league didn’t have that great of a reputation, but over the past few years that image has started to change. The competition has gotten a lot stronger, and according to House, there are plenty of guys who are that close to making it to the NBA.

“The competition here is real. There’s a lot of dudes out here that got a lot of talent that they can showcase. They just want their one opportunity, their one chance that I was so fortunate and blessed with,” House told Basketball Insiders. “I know not to come out here and take it for granted, that’s why I’m playing hard and of course still trying to be a student of the game and learn.”

Recently, during a media availability session, Rockets star and perennial MVP candidate James Harden expressed hope that the Rockets and House could work something out. Harden told reporters that they all know how good House is and what he brings to the team.

In 25 games for the Rockets this season – including 12 starts – House put up nine points per game while shooting 45.8 percent from the field and 39 percent from the three-point line. He’s in the mold of a three-and-D type player, but he also moves well without the ball on cuts to the rim and can attack the basket as well.

“My role was to play defense and make the right read,” House told Basketball Insiders. “Shoot when I’m open, drive, attack the rack, and run the floor. Of course, defend and rebound and make good reads. It was easy.”

As it stands, the Rockets have 12 players on their roster, and a pair of two-way deals for House and Vincent Edwards. House is not eligible to rejoin the Rockets until the G League season concludes. Even then, he won’t be eligible to play in the playoffs as per two-way deal restrictions.

The Rockets will need to add at least two players to get up to the league-mandated 14 players on the roster. House would appear to be a good candidate for one of those spots, but that remains to be seen. But regardless of whether or not it works out in Houston, House is confident that he’s done enough to prove he belongs in the NBA.

“It gave me the utmost confidence, but my hard work, my passion, and my faith in the man upstairs gave me the ability. I asked him to guide me through the journey and he’s been taking care of me,” House told Basketball Insiders. “I’m so grateful that the opportunities and I used my ability to perform and do something I love to take care of my family.”

Basketball Insiders Deputy Editor Jesse Blancarte and Writer James Blancarte evaluate the L.A. teams after the trade deadline, break down the Eastern Conference contenders, and look for the Warriors’ biggest challengers.

Basketball Insiders Deputy Editor Jesse Blancarte and Writer James Blancarte evaluate the L.A. teams after the trade deadline, break down the Eastern Conference contenders, and look for the Warriors’ biggest challengers.